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I'm currently reading Programming Ruby (2nd edition) in my pursuit to learn Ruby. This book, known as the PickAxe because of the tool on the front cover, is part tutorial, part language reference, part best-Ruby-practices, and part API/Library reference.

The tendency with a reference book like this is to lump everything about a particular topic into long, boring sections. However, Dave Thomas and co-authors have managed not to do this. The book is good at switching gears frequently enough to keep my focus. Notes comparing Ruby to Perl, Java, and C++ add perspective if you are familiar with those languages. The code samples in this book also set it apart from similar programming books: the examples are concise–giving just enough information to illustrate the point in question.

As I read through the book, I find myself thinking: "Wow, it would've taken me so much more code to do that in Java (or C++ or …)!"

My July 4th weekend was great time of relaxing around the house with the family. The highlight of the weekend, though, was my cinnamon burgers. My creative juices started flowing in the kitchen, and while I was making the burger patties the cinnamon called out to me from the shelf, "Come on, please. Just a dash. You like me on cinnamon toast, let's see what I can do for a burger." So, in the cinnamon went.

Burgers on the table, my wife took one bite, made a funny face, and said, "What did you put in these?" The gig was up. I confessed.*

Now I actually quite enjoyed the burgers. However, I smothered mine with chili, so that may have changed the flavor dynamics a bit. I did manage to find a couple of burger recipes online using cinnamon, so I'm not completely crazy.

*This is a common scene at our house when I do the cooking. I like to do something new and different. Sometimes it works and I look like a gourmet chef; other times it doesn't work and we order pizza. The funniest part of this is that I'm turning into my father. I can recall my mother's words on more than one occasion at the dinner table, "Jerry, what did you put in this?"

I'm leading worship this morning at Grace Bible and sitting here trying to prepare my mind, heart, and sinuses (I've had a cold). It is amazing that the Lord allows me to serve in this way–singing and playing in front of a few hundred people. I'm not a super vocalist and singing while playing makes it that much more challenging. Not only that, this morning I'm the only vocalist and only leading instrument. No piano today: just guitar, drums, and bass.

Whenever I lead there's always a sense of "Okay, Lord, I'm going to do my best here, so You know that leaves a lot of room for You to fill-in like only You can do." There's a dependency: not only that He'll take care of the technical details (vocals, music, slides, sound, compressor that failed last week but is hopefully working again this week), but that His spirit can work in the lives of those worshipping. Point of reference is a Jesus' conversation with the Samaritan woman:

"23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:23-24 ESV

My prayer this morning this that people would worship in spirit.

A gargantuan 646 pound catfish was caught in Thailand last month. I wonder what pound test line you'd need for that?! See National Geographic for the story and pictures. The funniest thing is that the local villagers ate it.

And I thought Texas had some big fish!